Pulaski

And "rebates", "volume discounts", and "dealer incentives". A dealer is even less likely to pay the "factory invoice" price than a retail customer would pay the MSRP.

bewildering

Yep. Almost zero inventory. Cars that are available are 10% over KBB value.

Pulaski

What on earth are you looking for? Autotrader has hundreds of thousands of listings. ..... I just looked: within 25 miles of my home there are 1,700 Chevys, over 160 of them for under $8k.

BTW, You realise that KBB figures collected from dealers, are distorted, so that they can buy trade-ins at "more than book", don't you?

MidAtlantic

Try truecar

bewildering

With a young family I am in the market for a minivan. they do not excite me, but very....practical....

Maybe San Diego has too many soccer moms but I cannot find a decent price anywhere.

The best deal is to buy a new Odyssey for $3000 off MRSP - i got that offer through trucar

Pulaski

I still don't get it. ..... I have just been to Autotrader.com, and searched for used minivans within 50 miles of San Diego 92093 and found 546 to choose from. Given that they're much of a muchness, mid-market vehicles, neither luxury nor ultra basic, what is it that you're not finding within 50 miles of San Diego?

There are 67 Honda Odysseys upto six years old, mostly priced $20k-$24k. Is the price your stumbling block?, because in San Diego the weather is such that vehicles last a LOT longer than you might be used to in the UK. I would expect a Honda Odyssey to run for well over 200k miles, so one that is 60,000-80,000 miles is barely broken in.

People are also probably doing 20,000+ miles a year, so vehicles that from a British perspective look well used and half worn out are, in an area like Southern California, nearly new and with many years of use left in them.

It is the same in my neck of the woods - our Honda Accord has just clocked up 310,000 miles, and despite having recently needed a new engine (at 296,000 miles), it still has its original clutch, exhaust system (except the cat), and starter motor. The brake pads were last replaced 230,000 miles ago (I don't know why the first set only lasted 80,000 miles.) The current set of tyres have 70,000 miles on them and should be good well into 2017, and hopefully 100,000 miles, like the last set. The previous sets did 80k and 60k.

Bob

That is really good because ours don't even last 15K...anything over 12K is a bonus frankly

The second hand market is a weird one though. Down my way, can find a Disco, '08-10 going for $15 with 60-85K mile range. Lexus IS 250, '08-13 fully loaded for under $16K in the 45-90K mile range which is about a third of the cost of a basic new model. Mid range cars, you don't see that kind of saving and anything under the $8K mark is looking for a major repair at some point. Dead brands can get a good saving, a '11 Saab is about $4-5K but some parts are getting really expensive, especially the cat so while you can get a lot of loaded car for your money, I might not recommend it, unless you're up in Maine, where there's a few Saab junk yards and they're cheaper to maintain up there than in other places.

MidAtlantic

mrken30

This is also the time of year the new 2017 models are being brought out, so you may be able to get a good deal on a 2016. This is what I have recently been offered, not quite a minivan but has an option for 7 seats.

2016 Kia Sorento L model FWD

Automatic transmission, 5 passenger seating
Power windows, power locks, power mirrors
A/C, Bluetooth, Cruise control and more
On Sale now for $23,231

Or

2016 Kia Sorento LX model AWD

In addition to the options shown above, you also get:

Roof rails, Rear Camera display, Rapid charge USB port
UVO Eservices
On Sale now for $25,725

Pulaski

Is it the tyres, the car, or the way you drive?

These have all been Michelin MXV4 Primacy tyres, rated at 80,000 miles (for some reason the second set was only rated at 60,000 miles). We use the car mostly for commuting at high speed on highways or fast back roads.

While these Michelins aren't the cheapest, they last so long that they are probably among the most economical. I think we usually pay around $160-$180 per tyre installed. I don't believe in skimping on tyres, or brakes, so I doubt I could save more than $20-$30/tyre at the time of purchase and still feel comfortable, but might be giving up 40,000-50,000 miles of life - other brands usually aren't rated beyond 50,000 miles.

Bob

A combo of the tyres and the roads. I do drive like a granny...can't afford any tickets or insurance surcharges. The winters just wreck them and the window for studs in MA is too short to make it worth swapping a set over for the cost.

Low profiles, don't help and they're on the cheaper end of the tyre scale at $130-160 a tyre depending on if I get a pair or the full set at once. Rated for anything from 25-50K miles. It costs $100 to put a set of tyres on the car on top.

mrken30

I'm with you on this, your brakes and tires may be the only thing that stops you running into an intersections. Stopping a car in time is very important to me.

Pulaski

I only use brakes sparingly (which is probably why we have put 230,000 miles on the pads on our Accord, and my F250 has over 100,000 miles on the original pads and rotors, but it's still nice to know they're there when I need them ), but I value tyres to keep me on the road in turns.

bewildering

I should say that I am selecting for "Private Sellers Only".

Pulaski

Why?

You are less likely to get a lemon, and have more recourse if you do, by buying from a dealer.